- Shrunken G-Class will offer both hybrid and fully electric options.
- Hybrid borrows 1.5-liter turbo engine from new CLA, report says.
- EV version targets nearly 450-mile range, far better than big G EV.
Mercedes’ upcoming baby-G was supposed to be the cute, chunky electric-only gateway into G-Class ownership. But the automotive market is changing fast, and so are Benz’s plans, as it reacts to cooling demand for EVs in some markets, especially for its own electric cars. As a result, the boxy SUV will now come with hybrid power.
More: Mercedes Wants This Baby G-Wagen To Win Buyers The Big One Never Could
Internally nicknamed Little G, Autocar reports, the compact, GLB-sized, two-row off-roader is due in 2027 and will still be available as a pure EV. But a companion hybrid model is now in development, using the turbocharged four-cylinder from the latest Mercedes-Benz CLA sedan.
The change speaks to a wider reset inside Mercedes. The company has stepped back from its earlier EV-only plans, with CEO Ola Källenius confirming it will keep selling combustion models well into the 2030s to stay flexible across different markets. Tepid demand for the electric G-Class has, by most accounts, helped concentrate minds.
Read: Mercedes’ Electric G Flops So Hard It Could Change What Comes Next
The hybridized 1.5-liter unit is designed by Mercedes and built by Horse Powertrain in China, a joint venture involving Geely and Renault. Exactly how much kick it will deliver in the Little G is unknown, but the new CLA 220 hybrid makes 208 hp (211 PS) and 280 lb-ft (380 Nm) of torque, and gets to 62 mph (100 kmh) in 7.1 seconds.
In the CLA, the engine is paired with a gearbox-mounted electric motor that allows short periods of engine-off driving.
450-mile Range
Prefer your G a little more refined? The EV variant will reportedly come standard with two motors and all-wheel drive to preserve off-road credibility, Autocar says.
Also: Mercedes’ Smallest SUV Points To A Different Kind Of Compact Future
An 85 kWh NMC battery is tipped to deliver close to 450 miles (724 km) of WLTP range, which would be seriously impressive for something shaped like a luxury brick – it’s not far short of the CLA 350 sedan’s 418-479 miles (672-771 km) figures. The full-size electric G580 with EQ technology, you might recall, is only rated for 280 WLTP miles (450 km).
Regardless of powertrain, the Little G will be sold exclusively with four-wheel drive, and both versions are tipped to feature advanced torque vectoring capable of distributing drive to individual wheels to mirror the off-road ability of the larger G-Class.
Slab Sides
Where the baby G does follow its big brother’s lead, though, is in military-chic charm. Unofficial renders from Nikita Chuyko for Kolesa give us a credible idea of what the finished SUV could look like, showing round headlights, upright glass, three big side windows and a tailgate-mounted spare.
It looks like someone left a G-Class in the dryer too long, and the good news is the slow-selling G580 EV’s $163k price should also shrink, hopefully by around 50 percent.
Unlike many compact crossovers pretending to be rugged, the Little G is said to ride on a bespoke ladder-frame platform rather than sharing underpinnings with Mercedes’ electric GLC or C-Class.
That should help it take on the incoming Land Rover Defender Sport, the Little G’s most natural rival, though that gets a unibody structure. We can’t wait to see them duke it out in the dirt next year.
